US20050202748A1 - Freestanding, reconfigurable, disposable character form and kit for making same - Google Patents

Abstract

A freestanding, reconfigurable character form and a kit for making the character form, the kit including a rigid support member, self-adhering materials removably affixed to the support member, and a base member capable of receiving a distal end portion of the support member, whereby the support member is freestanding when inserted into the base member. The self-adhering materials can be removably affixed to the support member before or after the support member is inserted into the base member, without requiring a permanent means of attaching the self-adhering materials to the support member, or a permanent means of attaching the support member to the base member.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS
• This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/551,781 filed Mar. 11, 2004, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
• 1. Field of the Invention
• The present invention relates to puppets, dolls or action figures, and more particularly, to a freestanding, easily reconfigurable character form to be used mainly by children for enjoyment and education, or by adults for marketing and other promotional purposes.
• 2. Description of the Related Art
• Children like to role-play and tell stories for enjoyment and education. They especially like to create their own characters using dolls, action figures and puppets, and to change the look of their characters by using different facial features, hairstyles, and accessories. While doll and action figure characters often come with changeable hair and accessories, the facial features and overall personalities of these characters are pre-set. Although certain puppets allow children to completely change the puppet's appearance, such puppets lack the playability that upright dolls and action figures offer. Moreover, such puppets typically require glue, tape, markers or other means of permanently affixing certain features of the puppet's appearance.
• Further, acquiring multiple characters for use simultaneously in acting out a theme or story requires a significant investment in toys and accessories. These toys and accessories then create clutter, because they are too expensive to throw away after just a few uses. Such toys and accessories also are ill-suited for travel, as they are cumbersome to pack and carry, and difficult to track.
• Prior art that allows creation of inexpensive, disposable, personalized dolls, action figures or puppets either involves one-dimensional, flimsy paper dolls and accessories, or myriad small parts and messy glue used to permanently adhere features and accessories to a non-freestanding character figure.
• Children and adults also enjoy creating whimsical characters that can represent certain allegiances, such as sports teams, schools and company brands; or particular events, such as family reunions, weddings or holidays. Yet there are no known processes for easily creating personalized, inexpensive, rigid, freestanding and easily reconfigurable character figures with branded clothing and accessories.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
• To overcome these and other disadvantages of the prior art, it is an object of the present invention to create an inexpensive kit that allows the user to create freestanding, reconfigurable and disposable character figures that are sturdier than paper dolls.
• It is further an object of this invention to create a kit that allows the user to create a wide range of characters through interchangeable, removable and disposable facial features, hair and accessories.
• It is further an object of this invention to create an inexpensive kit that provides a theme and all of the characters and accessories necessary for the user to act out a story using that theme.
• It is further an object of this invention to create a kit with disposable character accessories that can showcase particular names and brands.
• It is further an object of this invention to create a portable, mess-free, all-inclusive kit that easily can be carried and used in transient settings.
• Finally, it is an object of this invention to provide an outlet for creative entertainment and storytelling that is easy to use and cost-efficient to manufacture.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
• The above objects and other advantages of the present invention will become more apparent by describing in detail the preferred embodiments thereof with reference to the attached drawings in which:
• FIG. 1 is a view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention depicting a comprehensive portable kit that includes materials for creating a freestanding, reconfigurable and disposable character form;
• FIG. 2 is a view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention depicting an inexpensive, freestanding, rigid character form with detachable, interchangeable facial features, hair and accessories;
• FIG. 3 is a view of a preferred embodiment of individual, interchangeable, disposable facial features, hair and accessories; and
• FIG. 4 is a view of an embodiment of the branded, inexpensive character accessories.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
• The present invention will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which preferred embodiments of the invention are shown. The invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the concept of the invention to those skilled in the art. Moreover, for simplicity, the present embodiment is described with reference to inexpensive materials and disposable figures. However, the invention may utilize any type of suitable material, including costlier materials, and the figures may be manufactured to be semi-permanent or permanent within the scope of the present invention.
• Referring toFIG. 1, there is shown a view of an embodiment of the present invention depicting a portable kit comprised of inexpensive,disposable packaging10; an inexpensive material to be used as a supportingmember20 for each of the character forms or figures; inexpensive, pre-made, self-adheringfacial features30 that are preferably made of a material other than plain paper; reusable, self-adheringhair40 andaccessories42; and abase material50 capable of holding a single character form substantially upright or any other freestanding position. The present embodiment contains materials for six disposable figures; other embodiments may offer more or less materials. In addition, the kits may contain less than all the features described above, especially where common household items can be used as substitutes as further described below.
• The components to make thecharacter forms60 are preferably contained in a single kit comprising sealable plastic packaging for portability and storage, but the packaging may include boxes, hard plastic containers, and other forms of conventional packaging.
• FIG. 2 is a view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention depicting a rigid,reconfigurable character form60; freely-standing in abase material50; bearing self-adhering, detachable and interchangeablefacial features30,hair40,accessories42 and branded clothing44 (see alsoFIG. 4). The disclosed embodiment features a plastic spoon as the supportingmember20 for thecharacter form60. Other embodiments may include other rigid inexpensive plastic utensils such forks, knives or chopsticks, or other custom-made, rigid forms made of inexpensive materials other than paper, such as foam, plastic or hard candy, or more expensive materials such as woods or metals.
• The present embodiment features abase material50 made of moldable clay for example. Other embodiments may include any variety ofbase materials50, such as foam, which enable thecharacter form60 to be freestanding when a portion of thecharacter form60 is inserted in thebase material50. Thebase material50 may also include edible materials, such as taffy or marshmallows, which have sufficient density to hold the supportingmember20 in a freestanding position. Thebase material50 may also comprise non-moldable, pre-made individual stands. While thecharacter form60 inserted in thebase material50 illustrated inFIG. 2 is freestanding in a substantially vertical position, one of ordinary skill in the art would appreciate that thecharacter form60 may be freestanding at any angle, including a substantially horizontal position depending on theparticular character form60 being created.
• Facial elements30,hair40 andaccessories42 may be made from self-adhering paper stickers/decals or any other self-adhering material, such as sticky candy or strips of dried fruit, shaped and colored to resemble facial features, hair and/or accessories.
• While each sticker/decal may comprise a single complete face,FIG. 3 shows in greater detail a preferred embodiment of individual, interchangeablefacial features30 andhair40. In this way, the individual sets of eyes from one face could be interchanged with a different nose from another face, or a different mouth from still another face, providing the maker of thecharacter form60 with a substantial number of options to create a unique character. The present embodiment shows aflat sheet32 of forty (40) individual stickers/decals. Other embodiments of detachable facial features, hair and accessories may be in other forms and sizes, such as on a roll or in individual units.
• The present embodiment also shows a particular artistic rendering of human facial features, hair and accessories. Other embodiments may include any combination or rendering, including photography, of both human and non-human facial and body elements, hair and accessories, including those of animals, aliens, cartoon characters, monsters, fairies, elves or other imaginary creatures.
• FIG. 4 is a view of an embodiment ofadditional character accessories42, and further including brandedaccessory stickers44. The present embodiment shows six (6) branded t-shirts44. Other embodiments may include any branded accessory or clothing item, such as hats, caps, jackets, scarves, bags, signs, books, sports equipment, flags and umbrellas.
• In operation, thekit10 is opened and the distal end22 (seeFIG. 1) of the supportingmember20, in this case the plastic spoon, is inserted into thebase material50, comprising for example, moldable clay included within thekit10. Thedistal end22 may be removably or permanently affixed into thebase material50. The individualfacial elements30,hair40,accessories42 and/or brandeditems44 are then removably affixed to the supportingmember20 to create thecharacter form60. Afterwards, thecharacter form60 may be disposed of, given the inexpensive nature of the materials. On the other hand, the existingfacial elements30,hair40,accessories42 and/or brandeditems44 may be removed and anew character form60 may then be created by using differentfacial elements30,hair40,accessories42 and/or brandeditems44.
• With present invention, thecharacter forms60 are created and re-created without the need for a permanent means, such as glue, tape or staples, to attached the variousfacial elements30,hair40,accessories42 and/or brandeditems44, and without the need for a permanent means to attach thesupport member20 to thebase material50. Note that the individualfacial elements30,hair40,accessories42 and/or brandeditems44 may be removably affixed to the supportingmember20 before or after the supportingmember20 is inserted into thebase material50.
• While the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the preferred embodiments thereof, it should be understood to those skilled in the art that various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made hereto without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims (20)

1. A character form, comprising:

a rigid support member;

self-adhering materials removably affixed to the support member;

a base member capable of receiving a distal end portion of the support member, whereby the support member is freestanding when inserted into the base member, and

wherein the self-adhering materials can be removably affixed to the support member before or after the support member is inserted into the base member, without requiring a permanent means of attaching the self-adhering materials to the support member, and without requiring a permanent means of attaching the support member to the base member.

2. The character form ofclaim 1, wherein the base member maintains the support member in a substantially vertical freestanding position.

3. The character form ofclaim 1, wherein the support member is plastic.

4. The character form ofclaim 1, wherein the self-adhering materials are removably affixed stickers.

5. The character form ofclaim 4, wherein the removably affixed stickers comprise individual and interchangeable facial features.

6. The character form ofclaim 4, wherein the removably affixed stickers comprise branded accessories.

7. The character form ofclaim 4, wherein the removably affixed stickers comprise human features and human clothing.

8. The character form ofclaim 4, wherein the removably affixed stickers comprise non-human features and non-human forms.

9. The character form ofclaim 1, wherein the base member is moldable.

10. The character form ofclaim 1, wherein the base member is moldable clay.

11. The character form ofclaim 1, wherein the base member is edible and having sufficient density to hold the support member in the freestanding position.

12. A self-contained kit for creating a character form, comprising:

a portable packaging enclosure accommodating materials for creating a character form, the character form including,

a rigid support member;

self-adhering materials removably affixed to the support member;

a base member capable of receiving a distal end portion of the support member, whereby the support member is freestanding when inserted into the base member, and

wherein the self-adhering materials can be removably affixed to the support member before or after the support member is inserted into the base member, without requiring a permanent means of attaching the self-adhering materials to the support member, and without requiring a permanent means of attaching the support member to the base member.

13. The self-contained kit for creating a character form inclaim 12, further comprising a plurality of rigid support members and a plurality of base members.

14. The self-contained kit for creating a character form inclaim 12, wherein the base member maintains the support member in a substantially vertical freestanding position.

15. The self-contained kit for creating a character form inclaim 12, further comprising a plurality of themed self-adhering materials.

16. The self-contained kit for creating a character form inclaim 12, wherein the self-adhering materials are removably affixed stickers.

17. The self-contained kit for creating a character form inclaim 16, wherein the removably affixed stickers comprise individual and interchangeable facial features.

18. The self-contained kit for creating a character form inclaim 12, wherein the base member is moldable.

19. The self-contained kit for creating a character form inclaim 12, wherein the base member is moldable clay.

20. The self-contained kit for creating a character form inclaim 12, wherein the base member is edible and having sufficient density to hold the support member in the freestanding position.

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